70 Years of The Cavern Club will feature more than 200 curated items, including personal belongings of The Beatles, when it goes on display at the Museum of Liverpool in early 2027.
The exhibition will open on 16th January 2027, 70 years to the day since The Cavern Club opened. The iconic venue is widely regarded as the birthplace of The Beatles and remains a top attraction in Liverpool for music fans.
Created in collaboration with The Cavern Club, the exhibition charts the club’s journey from a post-war jazz club in a Mathew Street cellar to a globally recognised and thriving live music venue synonymous with the city.
From performers to fans, the people who have shaped the Cavern over seven decades will be the focus of the exhibition, which will use photographs, personal objects, instruments and memorabilia to tell the story of the venue.
Exhibition highlights
There will be a wide range of items on display, with several stand-out objects belonging to members of The Beatles. Groups will be able to see a jacket that belonged to John Lennon, worn during the recording of With The Beatles in 1963 and the band’s 1964 tour, the Cavern Club dressing table used by Paul McCartney, and George Harrison’s letter to DJ Bob Wooler during the band’s early days in Hamburg.
At the centre of the exhibition will be a recreation of the Cavern stage, taking inspiration from both front and backstage life at the club. Other items on display include rare photos of the club and its patrons, original posters and flyers, and a performance contract signed by Stevie Wonder when he was 15 years old.
A storied past
The Cavern Club first opened in 1957 as a jazz cellar, but it quickly became known for hosting a wide range of up and coming artists. From lunchtime sessions that gave young Liverpool bands a stage to the arrival of the city’s new ‘beat groups’, the club became a place where new sounds could find an audience.
The Beatles played there 292 times between 1961 and 1963, while a young Cilla Black worked in the cloakroom. Gerry and the Pacemakers were regulars at the Cavern and became pioneers of the Merseybeat phenomenon which crossed the Atlantic, scoring US Billboard hits with songs including Ferry Cross the Mersey.
“We want visitors to leave our exhibition feeling The Cavern Club the way generations from across the globe have felt it, not only as a historic place, but as a living, breathing part of our amazing city.”
Karen O’Rourke, curator of sport, music and performance at Museum of Liverpool
Since its early years, The Cavern Club has welcomed everyone from The Rolling Stones, The Who, Queen and Elton John to Oasis and Arctic Monkeys, while current local acts including Jamie Webster and Red Rum Club continue its legacy today.
Jon Keats, Cavern Club director, said: “70 Years of The Cavern Club is a reminder that our story is not only about preserving musical history, but also about inspiring its future. We continue to welcome and showcase talented performers from around the world to play on our famous stage.”
Karen O’Rourke, curator of sport, music and performance at Museum of Liverpool, added: “This exhibition is our chance to tell that fuller story of the Cavern: the rise, the fall, the emotion, the people and its life today.
“We want visitors to leave our exhibition feeling The Cavern Club the way generations from across the globe have felt it, not only as a historic place, but as a living, breathing part of our amazing city.”
70 Years of The Cavern Club will run from 16th January 2027 to 31st October 2027. A programme of events will run alongside it, with details to be announced at a later date. Groups can book tickets for the exhibition now, as well as tours led by the exhibition’s curator, Karen O’Rourke.
Find out more information about the exhibition and book tickets here.
